


Status Quo Ante

by vulpinelucis (CanineKitten)



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Blood Drinking, FFXV kinkmeme, M/M, Vampires, vampire noctis
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-06
Updated: 2018-06-07
Packaged: 2019-04-19 05:01:25
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,433
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14229828
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CanineKitten/pseuds/vulpinelucis
Summary: Prompto thought he knew his best friend well. But apparently there were things Noctis hadn't told him about. Namely the fact that Noctis was a vampire.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is inspired by a FFXV kinkmeme prompt that you can find in it's entirety here:  
> https://ffxv-kinkmeme.dreamwidth.org/4747.html?thread=8995979#cmt8995979 
> 
> Here are the parts of the prompt that I used in this fic:
> 
> "Noct/Ignis vampire not-really-AU (As in, 99% based on canon, but also with vampires. Maybe only Lucis Caelums are vamps?) For whatever handwave reasons, Ignis is assigned not only to be Noct's advisor/mentor/tutor what-have-you but also to be his ... living blood bank. (...) I just want a scene of Noct feeding off of Ignis in front of Prompto and Gladio and it's not like a big deal to Gladio because they've been doing this since they were kids? And Prompto is like buddy, you just bit Iggy's neck and drank his blood, that's kind of a pretty big deal.
> 
> \+ UTTERLY FALSE STEREOTYPES ABOUT VAMPS  
> \+ bloodplay (like, a given)"

 

They hadn’t been on the road for more than a week when Prompto noticed that something was off with Noctis. He was looking paler than usual, and although he often was quiet, this was a different kind of quiet. He seemed to be completely lost in his own thoughts. Prompto tried to engage him in conversation, but he only got one-syllable words back, so after a while he gave up.

It had been really hot for the last few days. The sun had been beating down on them from a cloudless, blue sky since they had to push the Regalia to Hammerhead for repairs, and Prompto knew that Noctis wasn’t very fond of the heat. He insisted they keep the top up while driving, despite the fact that the breeze was very refreshing.

They were on their way back to Lestallum for the first hotel stay in almost a week.

“Can you hand me a ebony?” Ignis asked Prompto.

“Sure.”

Prompto fiddled with the tab. It was being suborn and wouldn’t open until he used more force. His finger slipped and he cut his thumb on the sharp aluminum edge.

“Ouch…” He hurried to stick his thumb into his mouth.

“Are you all right?” Ignis asked. He threw a concerned look in the rearview mirror.

Prompto nodded. “Just a small cut.”

The second he took his finger out of his mouth, a fat drop of blood beaded over the thin cut and trailed down the side of his hand.

“Shit…” It was deeper than he’d thought.

“Take this.” Ignis handed him a paper tissue.

Prompto wrapped it around his finger.

“Put the top down,” Noctis ordered.

Prompto was surprised at the terse command. Ignis complied without asking questions.

“We should stop so you can take care of that,” Ignis told Prompto.

“No, it’s fine!” The tissue was slowly turning red, but it would probably stop soon.

Despite Prompto’s protests, Ignis stopped at the first and best roadside convenience store. They all got out of the car and Prompto headed towards the store. It took him a second before he realized that the others weren’t following him. When he turned he saw them standing next to the Regalia. Ignis was talking to Noctis while Gladio hovered next to them. Noctis stared down at the ground, his hands fisted and his shoulders tense.

Prompto went into the store alone and purchased a potion. It stopped the bleeding at least.

“We’ve decided to stay here,” Gladio told Prompto when he came back. He was the only one waiting for him by the car. “We rented the caravan. Noctis is a bit.... unwell.”

“Okay…”

Gladio looked indecisive for a moment.

“Prompto,” he said. Then he hesitated.

“Is… something the matter?”

“Yeah… Actually, there is… There’s no gentle way to break this to you. Noctis is… he’s not who you think he is…” Gladio’s fumbling attempt at explanation wasn’t making Prompto less confused.

Gladio scratched his cheek. “He wanted to tell you in person when the time was right, but… now we’ve ended up here and, well, he isn’t entirely fit to tell you himself right now, so…”

Gladio sighed. “Oh, screw it,” he muttered. “He’s a vampire.”

There was a long pause wherein Prompto just stood there and blinked.

“Uh… he’s a… what?”

He was waiting – hoping – for Gladio to crack a smile and tell him it was a joke, but some distant part of him was starting to put the pieces together. It made sense, in a strange way, but at the same time it was just… insane.

“A vampire,” Gladio repeated, visibly uncomfortable. “I think it’s best if he tell you the rest himself, but at least you’re warned.”

And with that Gladio headed towards the caravan where Noctis and Ignis were waiting. Prompto followed him with a rising feeling of worry. Suddenly he wasn’t sure if he wanted to be in on this. What would he see when he stepped into that caravan? Worse… what would happen to him?

He had never felt afraid of Noct, and he’d spent a fair share of time with him, both alone and together with Ignis or Gladio. He wasn’t scared now either, but he was confused and his imagination was suddenly going haywire. One part of him was certain it was just a weird joke. Another part of him kept suggesting one horrible scenario after the other with wilder and wilder ideas, like how they had just waited for the right moment to sacrifice him in some sort of royal ritual.

It was crazy and he didn’t really believe that his friends would do something like that, but Gladio was acting so weird he didn’t know what to think. First dropping that kind of bomb on him, and then just walking casually over to the caravan as though it was just another ordinary day.

“Prom… You’re shaking.”

Gladio had stopped in front of the caravan door and was looking down at Prompto.

“I…I’m just…” Prompto clenched his hands.

Gladio squeezed his shoulder. “There’s nothing to be afraid of. Ignis is Noctis’ donor. This won’t affect you at all.”

Gladio went inside and left Prompto standing there, stuttering, “H-his _what_?”

Gladio really wasn’t good at this whole explanation thing. Prompto followed Gladio warily into the caravan, and closed the door.

The caravan consisted of a small kitchen area in the middle, a dining area with two narrow couches that doubled as beds in one end, and a sleeping area with a double bed that Prompto and Noctis usually ended up sharing, in the other end. Now Ignis was sitting on the edge of the double bed, while Noctis stood in front of him. Everything looked normal. Noctis flashed Prompto a tiny, closed lipped smile that made Prompto feel a little bit calmer.

The only thing that made something feel a bit off, was the way Gladio leant against the wall right next to the sleeping alcove, and watched Ignis and Noctis as though he was keeping an eye on them. Prompto didn’t know what he was supposed to do with himself. He wanted to ask Noctis about what Gladio had just told him, but there was something distant in Noctis eyes, and something strange and almost a bit uncomfortable about the way he watched every small movement Ignis did.

“Is your injury better?” Ignis asked. He was rifling through the bag where he kept the curatives, though now it was nearly empty since they hadn’t restocked yet.

Prompto nodded. “The bleeding stopped.” He threw a wary look over at Noctis as he mentioned the blood, but Noctis didn’t seem to notice.

“Good. Gladio filled you in?”

Prompto nodded. He wanted to say something, but he had no idea where to start.

“You don’t need to watch,” Ignis said almost shyly. “Though I don’t mind.”

Prompto nodded. He just remained standing where he was, twining his hands.

Ignis found a few tissues of antiseptics and swatted the skin on his neck.

“That’s disgusting, Ignis,” Noctis said.

“Do you want me to die from blood-poisoning?”

“No,” Noctis muttered.

“Then go and clean your mouth.”

Noctis took the bottle of what looked like some sort of mouthwash from Ignis’ hand and went to the bathroom, muttering under his breath.

Prompto sat down on one of the couches and fiddled with his phone. When Noctis returned, Ignis leant back on the bed. Prompto stared as Noctis crawled on top of Ignis and buried his face in the crook of his neck. Ignis made a soft sound of pain and curled his hand around the nape of Noctis’ neck.

Prompto couldn’t see exactly what happened from where he sat on the couch. He moved closer without any real conscious thought that it was what he wanted. He just found that curiosity and astonishment won over. Besides, he was still in a state of disbelief, and even though he logically knew what was happening, he still needed to see it with his own eyes to believe it.

He suddenly found that he was standing next to Gladio, staring down at Noctis and Ignis. Noctis didn’t pay attention to him, the only one he had eyes for was Ignis. Prompto felt uneasy as he watched the way Noctis sucked at Ignis’ skin. Ignis gently carded his fingers through Noctis’ hair. There was no blood, not at first. First it just looked like Noctis was trying to give Ignis a hickey. But then he pulled back a little, and there was blood on his lips and on his bared teeth. Prompto shrank back a little.

And then Noctis’ fangs extended and Prompto realized that it was real. Noctis was a _vampire_. Vampires existed. He backed right into Gladio, who held him as though he was afraid he’d collapse. Prompto realized he might do just that. And yet he kept watching Noctis as he sunk his teeth into Ignis’ throat again and pressed his lips down against Ignis’ skin so that he could trap the blood in and suck it out without spilling. He did it in a way that suggested he’d done it many times, and Prompto suddenly remembered something Gladio had said. He’d called Ignis a donor. So… He was _hired_ to do this?

“Careful,” Ignis muttered. He winched when Noctis sucked a little harshly, but his hand didn’t stop caressing Noctis head.

Gladio tensed and moved Prompto aside, like he was preparing to break up the two if necessary. Ignis was definitely starting to look pale.

“Noct…” Ignis touched Noctis’ jaw. “Noct, that’s enough… I can’t give you more.”

Reluctantly, Noctis let Ignis push him back.

Noctis didn’t look like himself. He was panting with his mouth open, his lips were red with blood, and his fangs… Prompto had never seen them before. They were elongated and pointy and really, really scary. And his eyes… Prompto found himself intensely wishing that Noctis wouldn’t look at him because if that gaze was trained on him… that predatory, barely human gaze, then he didn’t know what he’d do.

Ignis waved Gladio over.

“He took a little more than usual,” Prompto heard him say softly.

Gladio took a wad of the cotton that was prepared on the bedside table, and cleaned up Ignis’ wound. Noctis had curled up in Ignis’ arms, his face hidden from Prompto’s view against Ignis’ chest. His breathing was starting to even out. As Gladio finished cleaning Ignis, Noctis stirred. He raised his head. His eyes were their usual blue again, and the fangs were retracted and looked like normal teeth. He had been careful not to spill any blood and had licked his lips.

Prompto blinked several times and wondered if what he’d just witnessed had really happened.

“Are you okay?” Noctis asked Ignis.

Ignis sighed. “Yeah. But you shouldn’t have bit me twice.”

Noctis looked troubled. “I’m sorry…”

“We’ve talked about that. You’ll end up rupturing the vein.”

“I’m sorry,” Noctis whispered again.

Gladio came over to Prompto. “Are you all right? You look pale.”

Prompto nodded. “Yeah, I…” He desperately needed to sit down. Gladio noticed his state of mind and led him over to sit on one of the couches. Then he brought Prompto water, which he gratefully accepted.

Then Noctis came over to them. He stood a little on the side, looking uncertain. Prompto looked up at him. He had a lot of questions, and yet all he could say at first was, “Why?”

Noctis looked troubled again. “I…”

“Why didn’t you tell me?” Prompto interrupted. He was surprised at himself that it was the first thing he was asking.

“I’m sorry… I was waiting for the right moment, and then this road trip happened, and…”

He shrugged helplessly. “I don’t know,” he whispered. “I should have told you.”

Gladio went to check on Ignis and Noctis hesitantly sat down on the couch across from Prompto.

“You hid it well,” Prompto said.

“It wasn’t like I was trying really hard. I only feed about once a month or every three weeks.” He blushed a bit as he used the word _feed_.

“Why didn’t I notice, somehow?” Prompto said, mostly to himself. “There must have been some signals.”

He tried to think back but couldn’t remember any.

“I mean… You can go out during the day, you eat regular food… I’ve seen your reflection many times. You’re not unusually cold or anything, and you don’t look… dead. There’s nothing about you that hints about anything vampire-like.”

Noctis snorted. “How do you know what’s vampire-like if you’ve never met one before?”

“… Fair point. I just assumed that, since vampire’s apparently exist, everything I know about them would be true too…”

“Very little about the myths about vampires is true.”

“Then, what _is_ true?”

“I feed on blood… as you saw, but I can eat regular food too. It just doesn’t sustain me. It’s more for my taste buds than anything else. Uh… and I’m not dead, so all the stuff that applies to the undead isn’t true. I was born a vampire.”

Something started dawning on Prompto.

“If you’re born a vampire, then…” He hesitated. Could it be?

Noctis nodded even before Prompto could finish his question.

“Yeah, my dad is too. Every Caelum is a vampire.”

Prompto gaped. “B-but…”

Their king… their whole royal line… were vampires??

“It has worked out well so far,” Noctis said. “And our lineage goes back many hundred years. We have an arrangement, as you see, with a donor that we trust. I’m not allowed to drink from anyone else unless a new contract is made.” He leaned forward and said in a soft, almost pleading tone, “I would never hurt you, Prompto. Never.”

“But when I cut my thumb…” It suddenly occurred to Prompto what kind of danger he’d really been in. He wasn’t exactly afraid. This was still Noct. But now he started wondering… _could_ something bad have happened?

“It had been a while since I last fed, because of everything that has happened. I was trying to find a way to tell you before I had to… But then you cut your finger and I…”  
“What could have happened?” Prompto interrupted.

“I…” Noctis stared down at the floor.

“Would you have… attacked me?”

Noctis shook his head. “No… I’d have to be starved before I did something like that.”

Prompto felt like there was an unsaid ‘but’ somewhere in there.

Ignis had regained enough strength to get out of the bed, and with Gladio’s help he’d bandaged his neck.

Noctis looked up at him as he walked into the kitchen. “Are you feeling okay?”

Ignis grabbed a can of ebony from the fridge. “Much better. No need to worry, Noct.”

Prompto had a million questions for Ignis too, but he didn’t know where to start. Ignis noticed his lingering glance.

“Is there anything you’re wondering about?” He asked with a small, encouraging smile. “Don’t be afraid to ask me.”

“What’s up with this… donor-thing?”

“Well…” Ignis took a sip from his drink. “Some people are more suited as blood-donors than others. I was one such. We are sought out and tied to the Caelum line at as young an age as possible, in order to forge a natural bond with our dependent.”

“D-did…” Prompto looked from Ignis to Noctis and back again. “Did you… when you were a kid?”

“Feed him?” Ignis shook his head. “We had to wait till Noct was old enough not to…” He hesitated and exchanged a glance with Noctis, who was twining a thread from his shirt around his fingers.

“It takes some time to learn how to not hurt someone while feeding,” Noctis explained. “We had to wait till I was old enough to control myself.”

Prompto wanted to ask whom he fed on until then, though he wasn’t entirely sure he wanted to know the answer.

“Are baby vampires dangerous?” He asked instead, because he suddenly got a mental image of baby-vampire Noct, and it was undeniably a cute thought.

Ignis chuckled. “Not really. They’re not very strong. But it’s still a bad idea to allow their pointy little teeth too close to an unprotected blood vessel.”

Prompto fell quiet for a while.

“I need to start dinner,” Ignis said. “Will you help me, Gladio?”

The two started to prepare the ingredients while Noctis and Prompto remained sitting.

Noctis fidgeted. “Are we cool?” He finally asked.

“Yeah,” Prompto answered immediately. “Of course we are! I’m just trying to wrap my head around all of this…”

Noctis smiled.

“Hey…” Prompto said and stared at Noctis straight, white teeth. “Those… fangs. Can you, like, extend them at will?”

Noctis nodded.

“Can you show me?”

“Now?”

“Yeah?”

Noctis hesitated for a moment before he opened his mouth slightly. As Prompto watched, his canines elongated until they were twice as long as usual.

Prompto moved closer.

“Those are real,” he muttered, fascinated.

Without thinking he touched Noctis’ upper lip and let his thumb slide down the sharpened canine. It felt softer at the root than ordinary teeth were. Noctis shivered and Prompto pulled back.

“Weird?”

Noctis blushed a bit. “Nice, actually…”

“I suppose not many have touched you there.”

Noctis retracted his fangs, and Prompto moved back to his side of the room. He fidgeted a bit.

“Hey… Can you turn into a bat?”

Noctis laughed. “No.”

Prompto was a little disappointed. “Can you shape shift at all?”

Noctis shook his head.

“What about mind-control?”

“What? No.”

“That’s not an unusual myth,” Prompto defended himself.

“I’m afraid I’m pretty far from what vampire-myths tell you.”

“So what is true?”

“We drink blood, and we’re slightly stronger than normal people, I guess, but I still can’t take Gladio in a hand-to-hand fight. And we’re a bit sensitive to sunlight and warm weather. Uh… that’s about it.”

“Wow… that’s kinda boring.”

Noctis shrugged with a smile. “I know.”

 

\-----

 

That evening Noctis didn’t eat anything for dinner, and Ignis didn’t offer him anything. Noctis looked sated and calm, and Prompto found that it was easy to talk about what he’d just discovered. Noctis answered willingly away, and so did Ignis and Gladio, when they could.

“Why have I never heard anything about the royal family being vampires?” Prompto asked.

Ignis was the one who answered. “It’s a well-kept secret, and it’s important that it stays that way.”

“I wont tell anyone!”

“I know that, Prom, “ Noctis said. “I trust you.”

Prompto flashed him a smile.

“But how did the royal bloodline end up that way? I mean… how does someone become a vampire in the first place? And does it just continue on forever?”

He suddenly had more questions than he knew how to voice. He stumbled over his words and stopped when he realized he had to give them some time to answer.

“I don’t know how it first happened,” Ignis said. “There are many myths, but the truth has long since been forgotten. The short story is that a long time ago, the Caelum line was cursed with an unquenchable thirst for blood. It can be kept in reign, but the hunger never really disappears. The vampirism should be kept within the family at all costs, so that it wont have the chance to spread, but there has been accidents with illegitimate children here and there.”

“What happened to them?”

“Most of them were found and raised with the king’s family, but there has been incidents where someone escaped their notice until it was too late, and went rogue because they weren’t raised correctly. Those incidents are so few, though, and have been handled so quickly that suspicion has never been raised.”

All of this was so baffling, Prompto wasn’t entirely sure he could digest it.

“So all the history books are lying?”

“For the most part, no.” Noctis’ smile was a bit grim. “They’re just omitting things.”

“Well… I’m glad you decided I was worthy of knowing this secret. I’m honored.”

“You do realize it means you’re bound to me forever?”

Prompto chuckled. “As long as I won’t have to feed you, I’m fine with that.”

Noctis turned to Ignis. He reached out and touched Ignis’ hand. “That, I hope, will never be anyone else but Ignis’ job.”

In that moment, Prompto was sure he could see through every single one of Ignis’ guards and straight into the mildest, gentlest part of his soul, and he saw that with his entire being, with all that he was, he really, truly loved Noctis. But then the moment was over. Ignis blinked and looked away, and Noctis’ thoughts strayed to other things.

“So… still think you can beat me in King’s Knight?”

And with that, their little group regained the status quo and everything, seemingly, went back to normal.

 


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I liked the idea of a story from Noctis' pov, so I wrote a little something...

Noctis leant back in the car seat and let the wind play with his hair. He was acutely aware of the warm, soothing presence of his three retainers. Gladio had a sweet, enticing scent, a promise of strong, tasteful blood, though Noctis had never tasted. Prompto had a tangier, fresher scent, and Ignis’… Ignis’ scent was so familiar to Noctis, so calming and reassuring that, if Noctis felt especially hungry and out of sorts, just leaning close to Ignis could calm him somewhat.

“Should I put the top up?” Ignis asked.

Noctis met his eyes in the mirror and shook his head. He liked the mild burn from the afternoon sun on his skin. It was almost like a sweet, tickling itch. A long time ago, many generations past, his ancestors hadn’t been as adaptable to the sun as they were now. It was something that had worked itself into their genes after generations of mixing with humans. Once there had been a hope that the vampirism in the Caelum line would die out, but the genes were strong and although they changed, they never seemed to disappear.

Ignis parked the car at the parking lot outside the town of Lestallum, and they all got out, stretching their achy bodies after so many hours crammed into the car.

“This road trip is gonna be the end of me,” Prompto grumbled and rubbed his lower back.

“At least we finally get to shower,” Noctis said and set course for the Leville.

It was feeding time too, and he couldn’t wait to get to the privacy of their room. He felt Ignis presence, his warmth and his scent, right next to him, and his whole body ached to reach out and sink his fangs into his soft, willing flesh.

He slowed down his hurried walk and took a deep breath. His fangs had started pushing out, so he had to focus to make them retract. He waited impatiently for Ignis to order their rooms and took the stairs two at a time.

As soon as they’d settled down, Ignis picked up the bag with the antiseptics and all the things that made Noctis wrinkle his nose. Prompto went to take a shower after Noctis had cleaned his mouth. Noctis had a feeling the feeding made him a bit queasy, despite the fact that he put up a brave front about it.

Ignis leant back on one of the beds, propped up on a pile of pillows. Gladio was sitting on the other bed, reading a book. He was so used to this that he didn’t even bat an eye as Noctis lay down with Ignis on the bed. The bed was so narrow that he had to lie halfway on top of Ignis.

He nuzzled Ignis’ neck and gently sucked on the warm skin to make the blood collect under the skin. Ignis sighed and pressed one of his legs up between Noctis’. A shiver ran through Noctis. His fangs were throbbing. He grazed them against Ignis’ skin before he let them sink in at the warmest spot in his neck. Ignis made a soft, satisfied sound in the back of his throat.

“Hey,” Gladio said. “Keep it G-rated, guys.”

Noctis let his teeth pull back and sucked at the wounds so that the warm, sweet blood flooded his mouth. He clutched at Ignis’ shoulders, ran his hands down his arms. Sometimes, the feeding bordered on something sexual. He wanted… he wanted to do other things to Ignis, but he was aware that Gladio was right there, and that Prompto could come into the room any moment.

He kissed Ignis’ neck, over the wounds, like an apology, and Ignis nuzzled the side of his face.

Noctis didn’t need much blood. He didn’t eat like humans did. His body savored each drop of blood and used it with care, which allowed him to take as little as possible from Ignis so that he didn’t exhaust him or harm him. After all, Ignis was left a little weakened after each feeding.

Generations of human influence had allowed Noctis to eat human food, though he couldn’t process vegetables very well. Ignis liked to keep up appearances by nagging him about it, but they both knew he had no need for the fiber rich foods. Still, though he could eat meat and pastries and the likes, and even liked the taste of it, his body couldn’t produce any energy from it, so blood was the only thing keeping him alive.

Noctis rested against Ignis’ side, his head tucked under Ignis’ chin, and enjoyed the warmth blooming in his belly.

Ignis reached over to the bedside table where he’d placed a wad of cotton and without jostling Noctis, he pressed it to the wound on his neck.

Noctis heard a small gasp behind him. Prompto had finally come out of the bathroom. Noctis realized, through the fog in his head, that he was lying plastered to Ignis’ side, almost languidly riding Ignis’ thigh, but he couldn’t gather enough energy to care how it looked.

Ignis had to gently pry him away as he sat up. Noctis curled up in the warmth Ignis left behind. He felt so wonderfully calm and sated, like usual after feeding. This time had been better than the last time. Back then Noctis had been a little hungrier than what was advisable, and he had been rougher with Ignis than he used to.

Now, though, they’d managed to keep to the usual feeding schedule so it had all been pleasant for the both of them. Noctis dozed off, and was woken up a little later by Ignis who herded him to the shower to wash off the road dust. After that Noctis stumbled into bed and instantly fell into a deep, satisfied sleep.

 


End file.
